Israeli paratrooper commander killed in southern Gaza
JERUSALEM (AA) – The Israeli army has announced that a paratrooper commander was killed in clashes with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, bringing their total death toll since October 7 to 466.
The army said in a statement that Major Reserve Orel Cohen, 33, of the Givati Brigade, was killed in a battle in southern Gaza.
Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip since the October 7 attack by Hamas, killing at least 19,667 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injuring 52,586 others, according to health authorities in the enclave.
The Israeli onslaught has left Gaza in ruins with half of the coastal territory’s houses damaged or destroyed, and nearly 2 million people displaced within the densely-populated enclave amid shortages of food and clean water.